On the road in the UAE with Sadig Elamin, an IDHA alum and UNDP Technical Advisor
Sadig was driving home in the UAE, just finishing a call for his work with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ukraine, when he picked up a video chat from me. I witnessed the UAE landscape, a blur, brushing past his car as he answered my questions.
Even though the devastating and long-lasting civil war continues to ravage his home country, Sudan, Sadig continues to reflect on how many others are hurting, too, such as the people of Ukraine. We discussed these reflections, Sadig’s day-to-day as a Technical Advisor to the UNDP, and how one IDHA graduation speaker’s quote remains in his memory fifteen years later.
Sadig Elamin is an IDHA 21 (2007) alum and has also served as a IDHA tutor.
LE: 2007 was a bit long ago. Now, we are at IDHA 60, and that’s in Pretoria currently. What do you remember about your experience in the IDHA?
SE: Although it was long ago, it seems like yesterday. It was quite transformative. Before that, I was mainly focused on technical aspects related to information management and GIS, where I met with the course director, Larry Hollingworth, who was deployed as a Humanitarian Coordinator to Lebanon in 2006. I worked with him very closely, but my function was mainly technical. Larry recommended that I participate in the IDHA to expand my horizons and gain more knowledge on the holistic picture of the humanitarian world. I joined the March 2007 cohort.
The IDHA completely transformed my career, so to speak, and expanded my horizons. I look at things holistically, not just from narrow technical aspects but from how things connect and coordinate.
LE: Where were you working at the time?
SE: I was working with OCHA. I met Larry in 2006 in Lebanon.
LE: Fast forward a couple of decades. How do you use those tools today in your career as a technical advisor for UNDP?
SE: The IDHA provided a foundational package that I use in every aspect of my work and daily life. It laid the groundwork for the humanitarian response framework. For example, it covered essential elements like the legal foundations for a response, how to manage different aspects of a crisis, and the roles of different sectors and clusters; all integrated within the project cycle management approach. This framework is universally applicable for humanitarian response as well as in recovery and development contexts and underpins all my activities, including my current work with UNDP.
These tools, especially the project cycle management approach, and the understanding of how to integrate and apply it contextually while prioritizing the human aspect have been constant companions throughout my career.
LE: I heard the IDHA was a transformational experience for you in only 4 weeks. That’s incredible.
SE: For me, it was a little bit different. Though the initial training was four weeks, I was honored to be selected as a tutor and to guest lecture for future IDHA courses in New York, Geneva, Kenya, Ireland, Sudan, Lebanon, and Jordan. I kept coming back (to the IDHA) because I felt a responsibility to contribute to change. I was passionate to take time off my regular work to invest in the next generation of humanitarians. I became part of this IIHA family.
I kept coming back (to the IDHA) because I felt a responsibility to contribute to change. I was passionate to take time off my regular work to invest in the next generation of humanitarians. I became part of this IIHA family.
LE: It’s great to have you in the IIHA family.
SE: I really appreciate it.
LE: What was your favorite memory about the IDHA?
SE: The whole journey. It was amazing. While it was very tough and demanding, we enjoyed every single part of it. Within the course, my favorite memory is of the graduation speech on the last day. All speeches were inspiring, and as a tutor I was privileged enough to come back and attend several of them. The best speaker was Richard J. Goldstone in Dublin at IDHA 30 (2010), a human rights judge based in South Africa who, I will always remember, said, “Never say never,” especially about the future of your career.”
LE: You’ve been an IDHA tutor for several cohorts and interacted with many of our students. Do you have advice for students in IDHA 60 right now as they complete their third week?
SE: Enjoy every minute of it, try to absorb as much knowledge as possible not only from the tutors and the instructors but also amongst yourselves. The professional, technical and social bonds you form now will largely last for decades, and I say that from experience! Chances are you bump into IDHA mates out in the field for years to come.
The professional, technical and social bonds you form now will largely last for decades, and I say that from experience! Chances are you bump into IDHA mates out in the field for years to come.
LE: You’re in your car right now. Can you tell readers a typical day in the life of a tech advisor for the U.N.?
SE: I’m based in the UAE and have been supporting UNDP operations in Ukraine since April 2022, shortly after the full-scale invasion began. Working for the U.N. is profoundly rewarding, you end each day knowing you’ve contributed something meaningful. At the same time, it can be a heartbreaking experience as political complexities often undermine or overshadow the results and recognition of the work.
On my first mission to Ukraine, I was traveling for 10 hours from the western border to Kyiv by car. Despite all that was going on, I could only see a golden color on the horizon, sunflowers on one side, wheat on the other. I felt a mixed feeling, in the sense that I was passionate and eager to come and support the Ukrainian people, but I was taken by the resilience of the Ukrainians, who never stopped working from day one. No matter what the circumstances were at that time, they kept feeding the entire world without anyone knowing about it. This filled me with admiration, yet also a heavy heart for my own country, Sudan, which was supposed to be “the breadbasket of the world.” Yet, at some point, hosted the largest WFP operation globally.
Back to your point, as a technical advisor for the UNDP it’s business as usual. When you get used to the adrenaline kick and being part of these dynamics within the downside of emergencies or during chaotic situations, you try your best to make use of the accumulated experience and contextualize it so that people do not spend time reinventing the wheel and thinking for solutions.
The more experience you have in the field, the better contribution you will make to the people and the host government. When you are newly deployed, the initial learning curve is steep. You must rapidly understand the situation, context, cultures, facts, and figures while simultaneously advising operations. Balance is critical to avoid prolonged passivity, but never generate solutions without deep understanding. It’s intensely rewarding work, yet you constantly confront devastation and loss and you have to be mentally prepared.
In general, life persists even in crisis, and restaurants reopen against all odds. As responders, we channel the intensity of these environments into positive action.
It’s intensely rewarding work, yet you constantly confront devastation and loss and you have to be mentally prepared.
LE: What are some skills you would recommend having before working in the technical advising area?
SE: In the era of Artificial Intelligence, technical advising is being transformed. Much of the accumulated experience is now being distilled and optimized by AI with contributions of 100s of millions. However, no matter how good this artificial intelligence advice is, the human touch remains key. My advice is twofold.
1) Commit to continuous learning to diversify and expand your skill set and tools, not be defined or focused on one specific area.
2) Think outside the box and master innovative thinking. The catastrophic impact of recent funding cuts across the U.N., especially on humanitarian response, creates a ‘tsunami effect’ that will last long and will forever change the way business is done. This demands innovative approaches not just to fundraising, but also implementation modalities, cost reduction, and monitoring and evaluation mechanisms. Success requires finding new ways to secure resources within an increasingly constrained operational space.
LE: On the UNDP website, artificial intelligence is front and center. How do you think AI helps in humanitarian issues? What’s the potential there?
SE: One of the biggest pillars of humanitarian coordination is information management that guides the entire project management cycle. Without it, you can’t understand needs, design responses, or track impact. We use specific tools to collect data, analyze it, and present it meaningfully.
These tools and processes are rapidly evolving and I believe within months, AI will be leveraged across many functions to support key personnel. And in some cases replace them, fundamentally changing how we work. Hundreds of roles won’t revert to pre-AI methods. This transformation will be especially critical in information management within the humanitarian and development context.
No matter how good this artificial intelligence advice is, the human touch remains key.
LE: Would you say AI helps you do your job?
SE: Absolutely.
LE: You worked at UNICEF before working as a consultant at UNDP. What’s a major issue impacting children around the world right now?
SE: The challenges and divides are increasing globally. Education is a critical pressure point in many countries, including my homeland, Sudan, where it faces funding cuts and deprioritization. These cuts, and the resulting decline in immunization access, demand urgent and sustained advocacy and support including search for alternative and innovative funding mechanisms. Children must never be victims of these crises.
LE: Right now, you are living and working in the UAE. What do you like to do in your free time?
SE: Much of my free time is inspired by mentors who shaped me profoundly. I was lucky to work with Larry Hollingworth, observing his dedication to humanitarian work in every aspect of daily life. Another mentor, Babiker El Obied, instilled in me his family’s (Babiker Badri family) lifelong mission in education, especially for girls. Their ways have shaped me both professionally and personally. Inspired by their examples, in the UAE, I channel this inspiration by working with Sudanese adolescents in an attempt to nurture the social incubator within our diaspora and helping them maintain their connection to Sudan, or to the memories we hold of it.
Follow Sadig’s humanitarian career journey on LinkedIn. Learn more about UNDP. Learn more about the IDHA.
Interview recorded and edited by Lily Egan, Communications Officer, Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs (IIHA) at Fordham University.
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The Institute acts as a bridge between the University and humanitarian practice, hosts lectures and symposia on a regular basis, and is the US partner for NOHA, a consortium of 12 European universities offering humanitarian education. The IIHA at 2546 Belmont Ave, Bronx, New York at Fordham University also provides space for undergrad and graduate students to bond during meetings, guest speaker events, and gallery exhibitions. In addition to our Humanitarian Studies, International Diploma, Diplomatic Training, and short Humanitarian Training courses, the IIHA publishes on a wide range of humanitarian topics, such as A Skein of Thought. Our staff and faculty come to us with years of U.N. experience and in-the-field humanitarian aid work. Follow: IG l FB l LinkedIn l X Subscribe:Humanitarian Fault Lines Podcast Media Inquiries: Lily Egan.
